One Alone is Not Enough
by Muddi the Mudkip
Summary: Times are changing, and evil is taking over Hyrule. In order to save her kingdom, a princess goes into hiding to unlock the mysteries of the land and bring forth light to the growing darkness. With the help of a familiar face, the land could be saved... If not, the people, the kingdom, and even the world will crumble. Power, wisdom, and courage are necessary to survive.
1. Epi 1 The Legend of the Land

**Hoo buddy, what am I getting myself into? Okey doke, here's the plan: in my mind, I have a whole story about how I think the Zelda universe is in my mind brewing, and I've planned a three part saga to go along with it that I plan to write to the very end. Anyway, stay tuned, and I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Episode One: The Triforce Recreated

_And from the depths of the Earth, the Windfish rose, ready to create the world he had always imagined. The universe had been plagued with evil forces, and the time for him to awake had come. He was wise and benevolent, and he knew that he could not reign over his world and vanquish the evil without help. So he hatched an egg, and from this, three beautiful golden goddesses were created. The first was named Din, whose fiery passion and power led her to become the leader of the group. The second was Nayru, whose boundless wisdom would be unmatched by anyone they would ever create. The final goddess was Farore, whose courage would allow her to face any fears and send the evil back to their beginnings. Eased by the presence of the goddesses and the knowledge that they would be able to save the universe, the Windfish shut his eyes and fell back down to the core, where he would resume his eternal slumber._

_To prevent the evil from spreading more, the Golden Goddesses split the Earth into pieces and raised these islands into the air. However, to share a common bond among the world, they left a piece to remain on the surface: Hyrule. When the lands had been successfully split up, the forces of evil began to wane. However, it was not enough. The Golden Goddesses needed a way to vanquish them for good. Them alone could not destroy the malevolence. That's when the wise Nayru came up with a plan. Using the forces of the goddesses combined, they would create a holy and sacred power that would give life to the world and from this life a light would be created to vanquish the darkness. With Din's power, Nayru's wisdom, and Farore's courage, they created the legendary Triforce. Using this, the land filled with spirit; vegetation sprawled across Hyrule and the islands, rivers and oceans flooded the arid earth, mountains and hills sprang up from the ground, and animals bounded through with joy and happiness._

_However, the Golden Goddesses were not content. Even with the world reunited with peace, they could not celebrate just yet. There was nothing that would uphold the laws of the land and give thanks to the goddesses. There was nothing that would appreciate all the hard work that they did. As before, the great Nayru thought up a plan; each goddess would contribute two life forms with enough intelligence to bask in their glory. This way, each of the goddesses' traits could be demonstrated in their life forms. _

_To create a balance in her life forms, Nayru made two creatures: one who mastered waters and one who mastered the land. She named these the Zoras and the Sheikahs. Following in suit, Din created two with a balance between male and female: the hardworking, male Gorons and the female-only Gerudos. Not wanting to be left out, Farore created a balance between light and dark: the photosynthesis loving Dekus and the shadow loving Twili. In order for each race to be fully recognized for their specialties, the goddesses ultimately decided on a seventh race that would have regular abilities and normal attributes: the Hylians. The Golden Goddesses would watch over their life forms with care in a palace in the sky set higher than any of the islands. The people below would revere them as sacred and holy, and few would ever reach their palace, with a famous example being the Fierce Deity. This Sheikah is most commonly known for being bestowed the three sacred gifts of the Triforce by the goddesses and acting as a hero of the dwellers below. Of course, he eventually had a tragic downfall, and – Link, are you even paying attention?_

A pointer stick smacked down brutally on the desk of the sleeping young boy, who sharply woke up with a jolt. "I-I'm sorry, Mr. Gaebora!" he cried. "I just get a bit tired during your sermons." Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say, because his owl teacher's eyes bored into poor Link's skull and the pointer stick snapped in his talons.

"Why, I dare say!" he hooted angrily. "Kids these days! Hardly respecting their superiors! Blatant disregard of the third degree! Why, back in my day, we appreciated the lessons our teachers taught us! The very things I am teaching you are valuable life lessons about the very things that shaped our life as we know it. This history has been passed down for centuries – no – _millenniums_! And you dare fall asleep in _my _classroom! I should have you banished from this room. Nay, I should have you banished from this academy! Perhaps even Skyloft itself! And you want to be a knight someday? You will never get far without knowing the fundamentals of the land! I am whole-heartedly disappointed in you, Mr. Link! Why, back in my day –"

Gaebora's tangent was going off so much that Link was starting to feel his eyes droop a bit. He tried to pay attention – he really did – but Mr. Gaebora really had a way with making semi-interesting stories incredibly boring! Now that he had ruffled his teacher's feathers, there was no way to make him shut up. You just had to wait out the lecture. Oh, here was the part where he reminisced about the time he won the Knight Academy's annual History Bowl. Same story every time. He turned his head a little to his left to notice someone killing him with a death glare. Link shot back a snide look himself. That punk-nosed, snot-faced, little turd of a monster…

Mido. The bane of his existence.

All his life, Link has known exactly two facts: he had never left Skyloft, and Mido hated him with every fiber of his being. It's almost as if the only thing that wakes Mido up is the knowledge that he will get the chance to make Link's life a living Game Over. And he does a pretty good job at making that come true. Picking spats with him in the courtyards, playing obscene pranks on him in the dorms, claiming any girl he'd ever laid eyes on… If there was anyone that would make Link jump off Skyloft without calling his bird, it would definitely be Mido.

Currently, Mido was busy flipping Link the bird (quite literally, as the pencil he held in his hand had an eraser shaped like a bird) and sticking his grotesque tongue out at him. "This is all your fault!" he mouthed and pointed at Gaebora's babbling figure. Link simply looked back at him with a fierce glare. He didn't know why he let the guy get to his head, but every time he saw that smug look on the punk's face when he thought he succeeded at besting Link, he couldn't help but just sock the guy to the ground. Which has happened. Multiple times. Which ends in frequent visits to the Headmaster's room.

" – disgrace to humanity! All snails should be forever obliterated from the face of this earth and replace with worms! Erm, what was I talking about again? Ah yes, your habit of sleeping during my lessons, Link! Would you like a repeat of my lecture?"

"NO!" Link burst out. "For the love of Farore, please, no!"

"Alright, then sit down and pay attention!" Gaebora spat back. He turned his head to stare down all of the students. "That goes for all of you, you hear?" The class nodded their heads in fear, mainly because they did not want to sit through the torture of another lecture. "Good. Now, as I was saying, the Fierce Deity was the sworn protector of the people living below the goddesses…"

* * *

Time could not pass by slower when in Kaepora Gaebora's classroom. Nayru, the Oracle of Ages, must enjoy watching them all suffer as the time ticked by slower than a sloth walking a mile. But thank the goddesses, they were out of there! Link had to control himself from bounding around Skyloft and hugging the nearest tree. Ah, the scent of fresh air was so rejuvenating after being cooped up in that stuffy old classroom for all eternity. And the only reason he sat through that torture was the dream of one day becoming a knight.

Ever since he was a little boy, he always admired the knights that paraded around Skyloft. They were so heroic and manly and daring that Link aspired to be one of them one day. They were the people everybody looked up to. It was also the only thing one could really do on Skyloft. It was, after all, one of the smallest islands in the entire world. Even Termina was bigger, and it really only had four main areas of attractions. Five, if one counted the creepy demonic moon that latched itself on to the island. Also, knights who did an exceptionally well job at their duty could be relocated to Hyrule, the mother of all lands, to go live out a life of riches and glory. He could even be relocated to go guard the princess – the _princess_! – if he was lucky. Then again, the princess had been missing for over five years now, so perhaps it wouldn't be too much of a perk. However, Link was determined to seek adventure outside of his small hometown, and since renting a million rupee airship was out of the question, it looked like becoming a knight was his only option.

"Link! Can you even hear me?" With a jolt, he snapped out of his knight-mare and turned to where the voice was calling him.

"Oh, hey Ilia. Sorry, just thinking."

"That's a first," she joked playfully. Ah, Ilia; Link's best friend since, well, forever. She somehow always knew how to make Link feel better after any sort of torture he went through. She was a great friend who always managed to make him smile, even when she became snarky and cynical. The only problem he had with her was that he knew she wanted them to be more than just friends, but he really couldn't see her that way. She would be his friend for life, and if they dated, well… That would just make things really awkward. He didn't want to risk it. He knew that someday, the perfect girl would come falling out of the sky for him.

"You look like Gaebora chewed you up and ate you for breakfast," she laughed. "Was his latest sermon really all that bad?"

"Well, he did chew me out for falling asleep. But come on – learning about the goddesses is as much fun as watching paint dry! None of that stuff really even exists!"

"Oh, come on," she said, rolling her eyes. "Don't be such a spoil sport. You _know _that the legend of the Triforce is real. You know it better than anyone!"

"It's just a coincidence," Link muttered. Instinctively, he rubbed the back of his left hand. He wore gloves most of the time due to him constantly swinging his sword around, but one of the main reasons he wore them was because of the mark on the back of his hand. The outline of a huge triangle made up of four small triangles grazed his hand, and the bottom right triangle was faintly colored in. It was a birthmark, but it sure as heck was the strangest birthmark he had ever heard of. Who has a birthmark of a legendary object in history? No one but him.

Ilia rolled her eyes again. "You keep saying that, Link, and we'll see just how much of a coincidence it is eventually." She grew a huge smirk on her face and said, "You look like you need to release some energy. C'mon, I'll race you to the Goddess Statue."

Link sighed. "Yeah, sure."

Ilia pouted. "That's no cheery attitude! I don't want to race a boring old coot!"

"Okay, okay! I'm lightening up!"

"That's the spirit!" Ilia lined them up next to a large oak tree they were standing on. "Ready, Link? On your mark, get set… GO!"

* * *

With a light swoosh, the airship ascended back into the skies as silently as they had arrived on the small island. With a slight smirk, she held the shield aloft and fit it on her arm. Posing and flexing, she drew out her cutlass and gave the steering wheel a stern growl. She sliced the air and defended against the wind with a small thrust from the shining shield. She smiled. She could get used to this feeling… This feeling of triumphant power.

"Miss Tetra!" one of her cronies, Gonzo, called.

"What?" she snapped. She did not enjoy the disturbance of her playing with the shield.

"Erm, it's just that we've spotted Skyloft. It's not too far away."

"Excellent," she said, a smile brewing on her perky lips. She laid a gentle hand on the shield and stroked it. "Come night fall, the sword will be ours as well."

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**Well, how was it so far? Good? Boring like Gaebora's speeches? Let me know in a review! The life and blood of what will convince me to keep going! Added bonus, you get a virtual cupcake if you review! Ooh, shiny! Don't worry, things are about to get _very _interesting next chapter :)**


	2. Epi 1 The Sword Unsheathed

**Hey, hey! We're back with a super fast update! Haha, updating this fast really won't be happening too often once we get into later chapters, but I am on beginning writer's crack WAHAHA! Ahem, anyways, last chapter was a bit backstory heavy, and this one isn't _as _heavy, but still some details of life in Skyloft. I really think the story begins to pick up here and the next chapter, too (when I write it, hehe). Anyway, enough rambling! Let's get to the story!**

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"Hey, Link, pass the mashed potatoes!"

Picking up the steaming bowl gently, he passed it over to the beaming face of his sister, Aryll. Giving him a toothy grin, she got a dollop of the mush and smacked it down on her plate.

"Isn't it a bad thing to be losing teeth still at your age?" he laughed when he noticed the gaping hole in her teeth.

"I'm not _that _old!" she protested. "I'm only a year younger than you are!"

"I'm sixteen, Aryll! That's considered old!"

"I believe age is but a number! The maturity of the person is what proves their age!"

"Well, when you put it that way, you're more like eight years old."

"Hey! I find that offensive!"

"Oh, you kids," their grandmother chuckled. "Neither of you have grown up yet. Just like your father when he was your age."

When Link visited his house on Fridays, dinner usually went this way. They would pass each other food like civilized people, and Link would usually retort about Aryll's age. She would then snap back that she's not that much younger than Link, and their grandmother would look wistfully on and recall a memory of her younger days, as most of the adults in Skyloft tended to do. However, Link loved his grandmother, as she and Aryll were really the only family that he had. His mother and father had died in a Loftwing accident only two years after he was born. Link never really knew his parents well. The only memory he retained of them was the song his mother used to play him; a jaunty, upbeat tune that his grandmother had dubbed "Saria's Song." Sometimes, when he grew very lonely, he would whip out the ocarina his mother used and play it, just to remind him that they truly did exist.

"So Link," his grandmother said, snapping him out of his memories, "your knight's qualification test is tomorrow. How are you preparing?"

"Well, I've been getting a lot of sword practice in," he said with a smile. "I'm getting really good at vertical and horizontal slices, and my jumping skills have really improved. I've also basically mastered the spin attack."

"That's great!" his grandmother beamed. "I always knew you were excellent with a sword. Just like your father! Are you all caught up in your credits as well?"

"Yeah, I guarded some people's houses not too long ago, so I have my knight's credits all filled up. And I've been studying for my classes, so I should get those credits. My Hylian, Mathematics, and Science tests I know I'll ace, but I'm a bit worried about History."

"Oh, I know you'll pass. You always were a straight A student. Besides History."

"Too bad the written tests aren't after the physical tests!" Aryll chirped. "You could have more time to study that way!"

"Aryll, I wouldn't be studying while I was out flying my Loftwing and slicing down enemies! That'd be impossible." He closed his eyes and gave out a small laugh. "Y'know, one of the things I'm afraid of is that I'll get so excited for the physical portion of the knight's qualification test, I won't be able to focus during the written part."

"You'll do fine, I promise!" his grandmother said. "You always do. Just have faith."

The fuzzy, warm feelings resounded throughout the dining room, and dinner continued with more talk of knights, studying, and steak with mashed potatoes. When they were all done with supper, and they were washing the dishes, Link began to grow a bit nervous about the impending trials.

"Y'know, I'm going to go up to the Goddess Statue and pray a bit. For good luck next week."

His grandmother nodded. "Be careful out there. You know how the Remlits get at night. Bring your sword with you; the Keese are getting thicker lately."

Link grabbed his usual practice sword that sat by the front door and bade his sister and grandmother a farewell. He lit a lantern that sat outside their house and made his way over to the statue. He whelped in surprise as something smacked into his shoulder. With a look of horror on his face, he waved the lantern around wildly, trying to see what it was. He groaned; a Keese. His grandmother was right; they were multiplying. He unsheathed his sword and waited with bated breath for the Keese to make its move. When it approached him, he sliced it in half, its carcass falling helplessly on the ground in two. "Mess with me, Keese!" he taunted victoriously. Feeling a bit wary about the predator's appearance, he began to hasten his way over to the statue.

The trek wasn't that long, although climbing up the forbidding stairs twice in the same day was quite the workout. At least this time, there seemed to be music accompanying his journey upwards. By the time he got up to the top, he was clutching his stomach and heaving heavily. "Goddesses, I'm out of shape for being a knight in training," he moaned. Nevertheless, he picked up his lantern and walked through the stone arch that led to the plaza of the statue. He nearly dropped his lantern again when he saw it.

A mysterious figure was standing in front of it, with a gaping hole glaring out of the statue.

* * *

Night was falling, and a gorgeous sunset was fading into the horizon of the puffy clouds. This free-floating waterfall really was the best place in all of Skyloft to park an airship, as it was just high enough to stay out of view of the idiots below, and it also came with the best view of the land. Nearby, her motley crew had begun a raucous game of Monster.

"Ya got any Moblins?" Senza said with a smirk.

"Nope. Go fighting." Mako grinned, adjusting his spectacles.

"Drat," Senza muttered, picking up a card from the pile. "Ah, ha! A Stalfos! Just what I needed!" He put down a pair of cards next to him.

"Darn it!" Nudge spat. "I needed that! Fine, do you have any Dodongos?"

"Go fighting," Mako grinned again.

"Agh!"

Tetra rolled her eyes at her crew's growing stupidity. They were on a mission, and her crew thought they would spend their time playing children's card games. They could be doing so much more important things right now. Did they not realize the upmost importance of what they were doing? Perhaps with these items they collected, they could finally stop… _him_. Tetra clenched her fist at the thought of him. That conniving, evil, foul excuse for a Gerudo. Why, when she got back to Hyrule, she would show him what's what. Make her go into hiding for five years, _the nerve_.

"Miss Tetra!" Gonzo called from behind his card pile. "Are you going soon? I'll be happy to accompany you! I feel like it'd be best if a big strong man protected you."

"I don't need your help, Gonzo, and if I did need protection, I'd bring along Nudge, not you. Besides, the villagers here are wusses. Skyloft has always harbored the weakest people."

"But I hear there are Keese here!" Gonzo said with a shudder.

Tetra whipped around to give him a stern glare. "After all we've been through for these past years, you're frightened of some measly _Keese_?" She put her hands on her hips and stared him down.

"I-I don't like Keese," Gonzo muttered. "Give me the willies. With their large, swoopy wings and those gnarly fangs, and _ughhh, _I just can't stand them."

"More reason for you not to be my bodyguard," Tetra sneered with a roll of her eyes. She squinted her eyes and looked out on the endless sea of clouds. The sunset had nearly vanished. It was time to get going. She removed the red, silk scarf she wore around her neck and tightened it around her mouth. She turned back to her crew. "I'm leaving now," she said. "Nobody leaves the ship, got that?"

"But, Tetra!" Senza exclaimed. "With the cover of nightfall, we can go pilfering around! I hear Skyloft has a great pumpkin harvest here!"

"What, you're not too preoccupied with your game?" she said with a raised eyebrow.

"I've been losing all game!" Nudge spat. "I could go for some plundering." The rest of the pirates murmured their agreement.

Tetra groaned loudly and placed a hand on her forehead. "Oh, _fine_! Just don't cause any trouble or kill anybody! Don't want any more dead souls on my shoulders. And you all better be back by the time I return to my ship, or else I _will _leave you, you got that?"

"Yes, Miss Tetra!" the crew said in unison. Tetra let out a huff. She did not trust these men at all, but what could she do? As long as they didn't burn down any houses like last time.

"Ten minutes, fifteen tops!" she called. With a small sigh, she picked up the harp that was sitting beside her feet. She climbed down the side of the ship and took out her hookshot. She aimed at a tree located on the ground underneath the waterfall and pulled the trigger. The hookshot sent her shooting down to the ground in a blink of an eye, and she sort of hopped along the ground to regain her balance. Smoothing out her vest and making sure that her harp was still intact, she set off for the gigantic statue in the distance.

Stealthily, she sneaked around the sides of a few buildings and used her hookshot to pass over to some nearby trees. The lights in the houses were starting to go out, and moonlight was quickly becoming her only light. She smirked. Perfect conditions. Tiptoeing over to the island where the statue laid, she surveyed her possible options on how to get over to the statue itself. A long, winding staircase that would be out in the open and would take a rather lengthy amount of time and effort to walk up. Or, perhaps, a tall tree next to the stone pillars that surrounded the statue with a branch outstretched that seemed to beckon her arrival. Well, a pretty obvious decision, she thought. She didn't even need to possess the Triforce of Wisdom to tell which the better option was. Unleashing her hookshot, she latched onto the unsuspecting tree and rocketed up towards the sky. With a light thud, she landed gracefully on the top of the island. With a quick glance around to make sure the coast was clear, she entered the plaza in front of the statue.

It was quite a magnificent sight to behold. From farther down below, the statue seemed merely like a speck, but up close, the statue reigned up at least fifty feet in the air. Well, the more stone, the better protection of the object inside. Noticing a circular platform in the middle of the plaza, she quickly climbed upon it and posed for her daunting task. She whipped out the harp she had been carrying and plucked the strings as warm up notes. A soft, melodic tune emanated from the instrument, and it fired up Tetra's soul. She never got tired of listening to the harp. Clearing her throat, she sang a C major scale and began to sing a song. A quiet, smooth song with powerful meaning behind it, the Ballad of the Goddess was the song that was the key to everything.

"Remember it well," her mother's voice echoed in her head. "One day, it will bring you to greatness."

And greatness it did bring. With the finishing of the song, the statue in front of her began to rumble. A huge stone barrier located at the front of the goddess began to shake violently, and it slowly rolled over to reveal a secret compartment. Tetra's eyes nearly burst with excitement. There, sitting in the middle of the chamber, basking in its entire glorious splendor was the sword of wonders.

The Master Sword.

* * *

Link started to hyperventilate. Okay, so a strange person he had never seen before was standing in front of the statue at night and they had just knocked down an enormous hole in the statue. Nothing wrong with that, right? After all, these things happened all the time! _Holy Redeads, the Goddess Statue just broke! Oh, Din!_

Well, all of Skyloft was going to blame him for the breakage of their national treasure anyway, so might as well stick around and see what this mysterious stranger was up to. Perhaps not his most sound logic.

The mysterious figure darted into the passageway, so Link sidled against the walls to get a closer look without making any noise. On tiptoes, he made his way over to the chamber and latched himself against the side of the statue. Praying to the goddesses that the person wasn't looking towards the entrance, Link stuck his head around the wall to peer into the room.

The mysterious figure was now standing in front of a sword of some sort. It looked rather important, as its hilt was shiny and majestic. The person – was it a girl or boy? He couldn't tell, the face was masked and the hair could go either way – outstretched their arms and grasped the handle of the sword. Taking a deep breath they pulled up on the handle and raised the sword skyward. Or at least, that's what he assumed would have happened had the sword actually _been_ dislodged. This was apparently not according to the thief's plan, as they jumped back, startled. They looked rather taken aback at the sword's lack of cooperation. They grasped the sword again and used all their might to try to unsheathe it again, but to no avail. The person let out a frustrated moan, stepped onto the sword's stand, and began to bounce around comically trying to unsheathe it.

"Why. Won't. You. Come. Out?" they said through exasperated breaths. The reluctant sword refused to budge, and the person plopped down on the ground with a huge heave. "Crummy object," they muttered.

"Well, I guess that just makes my job a whole lot easier then," Link stated triumphantly, standing into the spotlight. The mysterious person flipped around to see Link's smug face. "That's right, try to steal our treasure under my watch, why don't cha?"

The person gasped, and with a flick of their wrist over their head as if they were twirling a lasso, they disappeared into thin air.

"H-hey!" Link stammered. "Wait a second!" _That_ wasn't supposed to happen. He was supposed to have an epic showdown with this mysterious person! All that remained of them now was the wisps of green smoke, as if a green gale had come and swooped away the person. Link turned around to gaze outside, but it was too dark to see anything. It really looked like that person had vanished. He looked over at the sword still stuck in its holder. A small grin crept up on his face. Well, even if that person failed to get the sword, there was no harm in trying to unsheathe it himself.

Taking a huge breath, Link braced himself over the handle of the sword. The glare off of the sword's magnificent blade was blinding him with all of its glory. Just being near it seemed to exude a sort of glorified atmosphere. He could feel his heart pounding as if it was about to burst right out of his chest. His hands grew clammy, and a drop of sweat slowly trickled down the side of his forehead. He placed a steady hand on the hilt, grasped it tightly, and pulled it up. He couldn't believe it.

The sword unsheathed.

With a triumphant smirk plastered on his face, he raised the sword skyward and let out a mighty guffaw. "I've done it!" he bellowed. "I got the sword!"

And just like that, the moment ended. A slender arm snaked around Link's chest and put an ice cold blade up to his neck, cutting it slightly and allowing a small trickle of blood to fall down.

"If you know what's good for you," the voice hissed in his ear, "you'll leave the sword."

* * *

**Whoa, snap! Cliffhanger! So, how was it? Please review and let me know! I love reviews, and I'll try to reply to them if you have any questions or anything, or if I just wanna say thanks. :3 Also, as a side note, I love the Zelda music, so I'll often be making references to the songs in my story as well. Case in point, Saria's Song and the Ballad of the Goddess. Anyway, please review!**


	3. Epi 1 All Aboard!

**I really enjoyed writing this chapter; lots of action and lots of snappy dialogue. I hope you guys enjoy it as well! Don't worry; I _promise _we'll eventually get into some really good plot. :)**

* * *

The thief's cold voice sent a shiver down Link's spine, and his neck was now searing pain at the cut the person made. They said it so deep and hoarse there was still no way of identifying the person in question.

"Drop the sword," they repeated, "and I won't have to kill you."

Link gulped. "No."

The thief was so shocked at this answer that they bounced back in surprise. "Wh-what did you just say to me?"

"I said, _no_," Link stated, growing more confident with his words. "I managed to pull up the sword. You failed to. I'm stronger. You're weak."

Wrong thing to say. "_You_ –" they hissed. "You'll _pay for that!"_ With a resounding _smack! _on Link's face, he toppled over, surprised at how such a small person could punch quite a force.

"Ow," he muttered, massaging his temple.

"Gimme the sword!" the thief screeched.

"_No_!"

"Agh!"

They pinned Link down to the ground and started to wrestle with him for the sword. "You are making things _extremely _difficult right now!" they spat. "If you let go now, I can spare you a lot of bloodshed."

"I won't let cowards like you think you can threaten me! I am a defender of the people, and I swear on my life that I will protect Skyloft and all of its contents from dirty scum like _you_!"

"Why, you insolent _child_!" the thief barked. Still managing to keep one hand on Link and the sword, they whipped out a decidedly bigger sword than the measly dagger they had used initially to threaten him.

"Uhh," Link gulped, silenced by the fortitude of the cutlass.

"It would be so easy to run this through your stomach," the thief said, "but I'll give you one last chance. Give me the sword. _Now_."

And in a thin, raspy voice due to the pressure the thief was putting on his stomach, Link managed to say one word: "No."

The thief screamed like a banshee. _"GIVE ME THE SWORD!_"

Catching them off guard, Link smacked up his leg and kicked the thief right in the groin. They whelped in pain and stumbled back, clutching onto their stomach.

"_M-men_,_" _they stuttered. "Thinking they can just do that, and they've won the fight."

Link, regaining his composure, stepped over to the crouching wounded and kneeled down. "Let's see the coward for who you really are!" he laughed maniacally. With one swift motion, he snatched away the scarf the thief had been wearing as a mask. It was his turn to jump back in surprise.

"Y-you're a _girl_!" he stammered. He wanted to say something else, but his mouth went parched. She was, in a word, _beautiful. _In another word, _gorgeous_. Her golden hair was wrapped neatly in a ponytail sitting atop her head, and her blue eyes were strikingly fierce. Her mouth and cheeks were rosy compared to her creamy complexion, and all Link could do was stop and stare at her. How was he supposed to fight her now when she looked like _that_? Stupid hormones…

"Good observation!" she spat back. "It only takes a genius to recognize a girl, you know!" Standing back up, while a bit wobbly, she readied her cutlass.

"I believe we were in the middle of you giving me back that sword when you became so _rudely _chauvinistic," she sneered.

"I don't think that's quite how I remember it!" Link snapped back, and the fight was on. The girl lunged towards him and sliced her sword, but Link's reflexes were quicker. He lunged out with the unsheathed sword and parried back.

"You're _good_," the girl admitted. "You practice?"

"All the time," Link smirked. "So one day, I can become a knight to defend people from thugs like you."

"Aww, isn't that cute," she cooed. "Trying to be the hero of the day. So sweet. Not even a knight yet."

Link snarled back, blushing profusely from the remark and swinging at her for saying it.

"What?" she demanded. "I'm only getting back for all those snide comments you said to me. Just making things balanced, am I right?"

Link slashed his sword diagonally, and the girl blocked him with just as quick reflexes. "Why can't my crew be as good as you?" she sighed wistfully. She lunged forward to try to attack him in the stomach, but Link dodged out of her way.

"There are more of you?" he asked incredulously. "Oh, _come on_."

"Yeah, but I'm the only smart one," she scoffed. She swung back at him in rapid succession, but Link continued to dodge her attacks. Finally, it got to the point where she had backed him up against a wall. "So," she said. "Looks like we've come to this." She held her cutlass by the blade and the handle and pinned him against the wall with it.

"I-I'm not done yet," Link heaved, growing out of breath from the battle.

"I swear to Nayru, this is your final chance. Give me the sword or else."

Link swallowed a dry gulp and leaned in close to the girl's face. "No matter what you do, I will always be here to stop you. No matter what you do, I will hold onto this sword with my life. Even if you have to pry it from my cold, dead hands."

The two stared into each other's eyes for a spell, and Link could feel his legs starting to turn into jelly. Man, her eyes were pretty.

"It's a shame," she tsked. "You're cute, too." With that, she mustered all her force and punched Link to the ground. His head slammed down on the cold concrete, and it started to throb painfully. He tried to focus on the girl, he really did, but the lights around him were fading away. Maybe if he just closed his eyes, he could regain his energy. His muscles went limp, and the sword was snatched from his clutching fingers.

"Checkmate," was the last word he remembered hearing.

* * *

Tetra skipped out of the statue laughing her head off. She'd done it! She got the Master Sword! No squirrely kid could get in her way! She held her head high to the sky and whooped as loud as she could. Five long years of research and preparation, and she had _finally _got the sword of legends. Goddesses, she was good.

She hummed a bit of the Ballad of the Goddess as she gracefully skipped down the stairs. What the heck, nothing could stop her now! She was on top of the world! The most powerful person! She had the Hylian Shield _and _the Master Sword! All she needed now were the Golden Gauntlets, and she'd finally have all three gifts the Golden Goddesses presented the Fierce Deity with. With them, she could storm that foul man out of her castle once and for all.

Skipping down the stairs seemed to go by in a flash, even with the stair's sheer immensity. Soon, she was on her way back to the ship, and she used her hookshot to latch onto a tree on top of the waterfall. It sent her whizzing back up, and she climbed on board her ship. She nearly dropped the Master Sword.

"Where. Is. My. _Crew_?" she screeched. A feeble body came trembling out from behind the mast.

"T-T-T-Tetra?" the measly body of Niko stammered.

"Yes, what is it?" she snapped.

"Erm, the rest of the crew are still out pilfering. I-I don't know when they'll be back – pleasedon'tharmmeIdidn'tdoanything!" he moaned.

"Shut up!" she spat. "They left _you _in charge? You're a disgrace, rookie." She rolled her eyes and jumped back down from the ship. "I'm going to go find them!" she called. "I suppose I have no other option but to leave you in charge, so don't do anything _stupid_, alright?"

"Y-yes, Tetra!"

Landing safely back on the ground, it didn't take long for her to find the rest of her missing crew. All she had to do was listen for the sounds of idiots, and she found them quite easily. They were quite literally pigging out on a farm that had a bunch of squealing pigs running around, scared for their little bacon lives.

"Oy!" she called out. "What in Din's name are you doing?"

"Miss Tetra!" Gonzo said. "I'm glad you made it! We need help wrangling up these piglets! Vicious animals, they are!"

Tetra rolled her eyes and let out a huge groan. "Gonzo, we are _not _bringing live pigs onto my ship! They will tear everything apart!"

"Who said anything about bringing _live _pigs on, Tetra?" Nudge said with a smile, holding up a small, limp pig.

"Oh – oh that's disgusting!" she retched. "Fine! We keep all the ones that you buffoons have already slaughtered, but we leave the rest alone, got that?"

"Oh, fine," Gonzo huffed.

Tetra looked around. "Where are the others?" she inquired.

"Well, Zuko's on the roof keeping an eye out," a dark shadow waved from up on top of the house, "and Mako and Senza are inside, raiding the pantries."

"Raiding the _what_?" Tetra boomed. "I swear, you men have no decency for women! I should leave you all here for the vile things you do!"

"Miss Tetra, pantries! Pan-tries!"

"…Oh."

Awkward silence. "Well, I better make sure they aren't doing anything stupid in there," Tetra determined. She quickly shuffled in there. She rolled her eyes when she saw the rest of her crew standing in front of the pantry, holding a Santa Claus-esque bag.

"Ah, Tetra!" Senza said. "Good, we need another hand! We don't have enough people to carry all this food!" He gestured towards Mako, who was filled up to his glasses with assorted food.

"You – We're going to _starve _these people if we take all their food away! We've already killed their pigs, what more terror are we going to inflict? For Farore's sake, we aren't _barbarians_!"

"But, Tetra!" Senza moaned. "They have pound cake!"

"Leave the food," Tetra groaned. "We have enough on board as it is."

Senza and Mako let out a collective "aww" as they placed the food back where it belonged. Out of the corner of her eye, Tetra noticed a flash of orange and stopped her two crewmates.

"Wait!" she cried. "We need fruit. To counteract the scurvy." She surveyed the fruit pile the owners had. "Take all the oranges, leave two apples."

With a grin, Senza and Mako began quickly stuffing the fruit into the bag Senza was carrying. "I knew you'd come around, Tetra!" Mako said, adjusting his glasses.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah."

A bump upstairs made Tetra jump. "Did you guys make sure the people living here were asleep?" she asked warily.

"Of course!" Senza said happily. "We knocked out the wife and children and tied them upstairs, and we killed the husband!"

"You _WHAT_?" Tetra screeched. "I told you, we were on a strictly no-killing spree! Oh, my Nayru, I've let you idiots kill an innocent man!" She clenched together her fists and bit down on her lip. She whipped around to stare down Senza and Mako. "We're going. _Now_." She flashed an index finger out at the door while her other hand covered her face.

"Yes, Tetra," the murmured.

They all shuffled back to the ship in dead silence. Getting the pigs up on top of the waterfall proved to be a bit of a challenge, but thankfully, the strength of the hookshots was strong enough to support the weight of a large man and a large pig. "Go figure," Tetra had mumbled.

When they were all on board the ship once more, Tetra stopped in realization. "Wait," she said. "I'm forgetting something."

"Yeah, Miss Tetra!" Gonzo perked up. "Something about you seemed odd, but I couldn't put my finger on it!"

She gingerly put a finger to her neck. "My scarf!" she yelped. "My mother's scarf!"

"Quick!" Gonzo commanded. "Everyone search the ship!"

"No," Tetra said.

"But, Miss Tetra!" Gonzo whined. "You love that scarf."

"I know, I know! But I think I might have an idea where it is. I will only be gone for literally five seconds. Nobody, and I mean _nobody, _is allowed to leave the ship. Got that?"

"Yes, Tetra."

"Good." Swinging her arm around her head, Farore's Wind picked up and swooped her away.

"What now?" Nudge asked.

"Start counting, I guess," Mako said.

"I'm not dead, you guys!" Niko cried gleefully. "Tetra didn't kill me!"

* * *

When Link regained consciousness, his head was in serious pain. He so hoped it wasn't a concussion. By now, the girl seemed long gone, and the sword went with her. He groaned; he let her go. It was all his fault. He steadily got back up and massaged his neck. When he looked at his hand, he nearly gagged at the sight of all the blood staining his gloves. Who knew such a measly cut could produce that much blood?

He wiped some of it off with his shirt sleeve, so it was a bit better. Still, he was feeling woozy at the thought, so he hugged the wall to regain his balance. That's when he noticed a small, red scarf on the floor. He wobbled over to it and picked it up, scrutinizing every detail. The word Hylia was sewn into it with gold stitching. An ornate Triforce was stitched next to the name. Link's eyebrows scrunched up. Wasn't that Triforce with wings the mark of the Royal Family? So that thief managed to raid the castle, too! Well, the scarf must have been important to her, so Link grew a sly smile on his face. If he held onto this, she would eventually come back looking for it, right? Then he could get his revenge. But he needed to be ready.

He ran out of the Goddess Statue as fast as his legs would go. Although a bit of a waste of time, he wanted to be ready in his knight's outfit, as it served more protection than the measly garb he wore right now. Along the way, some Keese tried to attack him, but he wildly slashed his sword back at them, and they were no bother to him at all. Somehow he managed to go all the way across town to the Knight's Academy, and he stormed in, rushing to his dorm. He slammed open his dresser and whipped on his uniform. Adjusting the brim of his cap, he smirked into his dresser mirror, and ran back out. And of course, that's when _he _had to show up.

Mido.

"What are _you _doing here?" he sneered. "Aren't you supposed to be at home with your little granny?"

"None of your business, Mido," Link huffed. "Why are you here?"

"None of your business," he snapped back, sticking out a tongue.

"Yeah, well, I don't have time for you," Link said, rolling his eyes. He was about to make a break for it when Mido stopped.

"Hey, Mr. High-and-Mighty? Where do you think _you're _going? Dressed up like that? What, are you going to go beat up some Keese or something stupid?" He laughed loudly at the thought, and Link was about ready to sock him upside the head.

"Leave me alone, Mido!" he growled.

Mido continued to laugh until he noticed the huge blood stain on Link's neck. "Haha, dude, the Keese totally slaughtered you! What a wimp!"

"I don't have time for you, Mido!" Link snapped, rushing out of the building.

"H-hey! Get back here, I'm not done with you! Come back and fight me like a real man!"

Link ignored him and continued his journey back to the Goddess Statue. It didn't seem like Mido was ready to give up though. He was running as fast as he could to catch up to Link.

"I know what this is!" Mido yelled, but panting as he did. "You're going to go meet up with Ilia!"

"Wha- No, I'm not!" Link said, breathlessly as well.

"Ilia would never like you, Link! She wants a real man, like me!"

"Ilia would like you over my dead body, Mido."

"You can't steal Ilia away from me! She loves me, and you know it!"

"I don't have time for you, Mido!" Link growled once more. All the way running back towards the Goddess Statue, Mido continued to pester Link about how Ilia was his woman, and trying to impress her wasn't going to work. When they finally reached the statue, Link had to admit he liked fighting with that girl better than Mido talking his ear off.

"Look, Mido," he groaned. "I am trying to do something for the benefit of Skyloft, so if you have a decent bone in your body, leave me the _heck _alone!"

"Oh, yeah, so you can have your fancy romantic time with Ilia? Not in a million years, Link. Not in a million years."

Link was about to retort back, but a sudden strong breeze snapped him out of his anger with Mido. It was a green wind that seemed oddly familiar. When the breeze died down, a figure was standing in the middle of it. Link gasped. It had to be that girl!

"Hey!" he yelled at her. "Looking for this?" He held aloft the scarf. The figure paused to stare at him, and Link realized that it was too dark to see anything out here. He groaned. "It's me, the guy you fought earlier. I have your scarf!"

At those words, the person lunged over at him and pinned him down to the ground. "You!" she snapped. Yup, definitely that girl. "You _bast_–"

"Who is _this _chick?" Mido asked in amazement.

"You brought _back up_?" she laughed hysterically. "Oh, this is too funny!"

"He's not back up!" Link snapped. "He's a parasite."

"Whatever he is, all I want is the scarf back!"

"Well, give me back the sword!"

"Over my dead body!"

"I can't even see you girl, but _dang _you are sexy!"

The girl stopped yelling at Link to glare at the shadow of Mido.

"_What _did you just call me?" she said with an incredulous laugh.

"Told you he was a parasite," Link muttered.

The girl stood up to confront Mido.

"Don't _ever _call me that again," she snarled, raising her cutlass.

"I am so attracted to you right now," Mido whispered.

The girl screamed loudly and lunged forward to attack him. Mido dodged out of the way, but he shrieked loudly. "Dang, girl, you're a feisty one!"

"Do you _want _to die?" she screeched and socked him one right in the kisser. Mido fell lifelessly on the floor, and she turned back to confront Link.

"Give me back my scarf!"

"No!"

"_Men_!" She obviously was having a rough time that night, because she didn't even put in the effort to toy with Link. She kicked him square in the stomach which knocked the air out of him, and she snatched the scarf out of his hand.

"Oh, look at this!" she moaned. "You got blood on my scarf! Well, at least it's red…"

She raised an arm over her head and twirled it, but Link wasn't ready to give in. "_No_!" he managed to spit out, and he latched onto her arm. He yelped when another hand grabbed onto his ankle.

"I'm not letting you get away from me, Link!" Mido snarled.

"Let go of me!" the girl demanded. But it was too late. That mysterious wind had picked up and all of a sudden, Link was flying on the breeze of the green gale. He and Mido were screaming their lungs out. The wind dropped them off on top of what seemed to be a large airship. The two boys bounced on the surface of the ship and rolled over like dead bodies. The girl shook Link's hand of her ankle and growled her disgust. She looked around at the ship and nearly died of a heart attack.

"What have you guys done _now_?" she shrieked. There were explosions heard in the background, and the ship began to wobble.

"Ah, welcome back!" a man's voice said. "Yes, well, it seems we've landed in quite the predicament."

"_Predicament_?" she screamed. "There are cannonballs _shooting at us from below!_"

"Er, yes, well it seems that someone saw us running off with the cargo, and they decided to tell someone-"

"_They are shooting at my precious ship_!" the girl moaned. "Do something!"

"R-right! Everyone, man the cannons!"

The crew shuffled over to the cannons on the sides and started to fire at the people down below. Link managed to stand back up on his feet and started to lunge for her.

"Oh, no you don't!" he bellowed at her.

"You just don't know when to give up, do you?" she snapped. "Gonzo, get rid of this boy for me!"

"As you wish!"

"H-hey!" Mido stammered. "I want to go back down! I'm done with this crazy chick!"

The girl sneered at him. "Sorry, kid, but I'm not sticking around while my precious ship gets blown up." She ran over to the steering wheel, and the airship started to take flight.

"Grandma!" Link moaned. "Aryll! Ilia!"

"Goodnight!" the goon Gonzo finished. With a deafening_ crack_, the dim lights around Link went dark.

* * *

**So how was it? Did you enjoy it as much as I did? Please send me a review and tell me on some things I need to work on; I really want to do better, and I need your guys' help! So please take the time and tell me something to improve on or something, even if it's like, "That sucked." or something. Thank you so much!**


	4. Epi 1 Dinner Date

**This chapter was a lot of fun to write. I'd also like to say that I really appreciate everyone who reviewed; it may not seem like you did anything special, but it tells me that there are people out there that like my story and want to read it. You guys are the best! Keep them coming. :D**

* * *

"I bet you anything he's a Hylian. Just look at those ears! Not as pointy as a Sheikah's."

"No way, Mako, he's definitely a Sheikah! I'm sure of it!"

"Niko, I don't think any Sheikahs even live in Skyloft."

"W-well, he could be a traveler!"

"Sure, you go with that. I'll just leave you with the prisoners."

"For the record, I had the last word!"

A door closed shut, and Link could hear heaving breathing. "So, Mr. Green Elf Hero Person Thing," Niko laughed maliciously. "What to do?"

"I have a name, you know."

Niko jumped back with a girlish scream. "You're awake!"

Link blinked open his eyes and took a quick look around his surroundings. From the view of things, it looked like he and Mido were tied up together in a broom closet. Not really pirate material; he was expecting to be locked deep down in a brig or something.

Niko regained his composure and cleared his throat. "No matter!" he declared. "You're still my prisoner!"

By the looks of him, Link could tell he was the newest member of that girl's crew. And with a little persuasion…

"Er, yes, you see, I have a reason for waking up. I terribly have to go to the bathroom. Very urgent matter, yes."

Niko sneered back. "Well, it looks like you're just going to have to hold it, bub!"

"Ah, yes, but when I saw I terribly have to go, I mean I _terribly have to go_. As in, I'm ready to go right here, right now. And you'll have to clean it up."

Niko seemed horrified at this. "Uh, well… Tetra told me to not let you go at all… Uh…" It seemed like too much for his scrawny head to decipher. "Er, well, fine! You have three minutes! I'll wait outside so I know if you're up to any funny business!"

"Yeah, okay."

Niko unlocked the chains that were tied around Link, which proved to be a big mistake on his part. With his hands free, Link slammed Niko into the sides of the closet, and Niko fell down as a lifeless lump. He plucked the keys from Niko's hands and unlocked Mido's chains.

"Hey, wake up, Mido," Link said, nudging him. Mido grumbled himself awake and blearily opened his eyes.

"Oh, Din, I feel like I'm recovering from a hangover or something," he groaned.

Link sighed; even when he was half-conscious, Mido still found a way to annoy the heck out of him. "Look, I'm doing you a favor! Right now, we are literally in the same boat together, so if we cooperate, we can both get out."

"I'd rather stay on here with she-devil than work with you," Mido said, sticking out his tongue.

"Fine!" Link said, throwing his hands up in the air. "Why did I bother unlocking you in the first place then?"

He was ready to leave the room when Mido let out a, "Wait!" He sighed and said, "I want to go back home to Ilia. I can't do that when I'm trapped here, so…" It seemed like it was killing him to admit he needed Link's help. He smirked.

"Well, come on!"

They exited the broom closet and checked around the barren hallway for anyone coming. Looks like the coast was clear. They were about to make a break for it when a voice overhead said, "What in Hyrule was that noise?" The footsteps started walking over to where the two boys were, and they started to freak out.

"Uh… Uh… what do we do?" Mido asked.

"Um… In here!" Link grabbed on his arm and pulled him into an empty room. It was nicely furnished, with two twin beds adorned with drapes and bookshelves looming mysteriously over them. Some side tables that looked very fancy sat beside both beds. But there wasn't any time to sit back and admire the scenery, because loud footsteps had clomped down the stairs and had opened up the closet they were in previously.

"_Niko_!" the girl boomed. "You _idiot_! You've let them escape!"

"What should we do?" the one of her cronies asked.

"Well, they can't exactly get off the ship, so we might as well start searching. Go look over there." The goon scuttled away, but the girl remained in her tracks. Was she mulling something over?

"Oh, Farore, we're going to die," Mido whined. "This is all your fault, Link! If I hadn't listened to you, I'd still be in there, and only you would be tracked down for Redead meat!"

"Shut up!" Link shushed. Footsteps were starting to approach. Link pushed Mido back out of harm's way as the door slammed open.

"Aha!" the girl proclaimed. She surveyed the room and let out a sigh. "I know you're in here, kids. Your nasty shoes left behind a footprint going in this direction. Come out quietly, and no harm has to be done."

"Over my dead body!" Mido screeched, and he promptly threw a side table at her. She dodged out of its way as it crashed into the wall, damaging one of its legs.

"That was imported all the way from _Holodrum_!" she pouted. "Oh, you'll pay for that, you will." She outreached a hand. "500,000 rupees."

"F-five hundred THOUSAND rupees?" Mido gaped. "You can't be serious."

She threw up her hands in mock distress. "And here I was, trying to be nice to you two. Yes, I am completely serious, that side table is solid mahogany and gold! Worth more than you two combined!"

Mido chuckled nervously. "Hehe… oops?"

She glared at him. "Well, I have another one somewhere, so whatever." She cleared her throat. "_Anyway_, I came down here for a reason."

"Yeah, to murder us violently with your hands since we broke out of our prison," Mido muttered.

The girl scoffed. "No, that was that idiot's fault for not keeping a good eye on you two. No, I came down here because I think you have the wrong impression of me."

"You took us as your hostages!" Link pointed out. "I think I have a pretty clear impression of who you really are!"

"I didn't _want _to take you as my hostage!" she groaned. "My ship was under attack, and I couldn't just throw you off the side! That river down below isn't the deepest, I noticed."

"That's a very unpiratey thing to say," Link said, raising an eyebrow.

"Exactly my point!" she cried. "Just because I'm a pirate doesn't mean that I do pirate things. I'm on a mission from the Golden Goddesses. I don't have time for trivial things like hostages." Glancing aside, she muttered, "Although, it did take me five years to find the Hylian Shield…"

"So, you're saying that you're not trying to be a pirate?" Link asked.

"No! Well, yes, but… Agh, I don't know how to explain it!" She grabbed the sides of her heads and clenched her teeth. "Well, I wanted to invite you to dinner in any case. I like to know the people who are roaming around on my ship so I can sleep in good conscious."

"Y-you're letting us go?" Link gasped.

"I'm not letting you _go_, per se, but I'm letting you walk around my ship. I'm not an evil person; I just like to stay focused on task."

"Prove it," Mido sneered. "If you're not evil, then you'll take us home."

"Don't give me that false dichotomy," she snapped back. "Did you not see your fellow villagers shooting death cannonballs at me? I'll send you back there when your village has calmed down and I can safely land there without becoming public enemy number one."

Mido glared at her, but Link stepped into the middle of it. "Alright, we'll eat dinner with you if that makes you feel better, okay?"

"Oh, no," Mido pouted. "I'm not eating any food with her, and I sure as heck am not eating with the both of you."

"It's ok, I don't want to eat with your shoddy attitude anyway," she huffed. "You can just eat with the crew; I'm sure you'll find them appealing. Birds of a feather flock together, am I right?" She gestured to the room and said, "Unless you really like the stuffiness of that closet, you can stay in here. Just try not to kill each other over your animosity, alright?"

She was about to leave the room when she turned back around. "Oh, and make sure you clean up your shoes. I don't want any more mud around here."

* * *

Link followed the instructions one of the crew members had given him and made his way down to the bottom of the ship where a decorative door awaited him. He knocked twice on it, and a voice from behind it yelled, "Enter!" He had to use a lot of strength to open the heavy door, but when it was ajar, he felt his mouth hang open.

A huge buffet table was stretched out in front of him, adorned with all sorts of food, including fruits, desserts, and a rather large roast pig in the middle. The table itself seemed to be of the same nature of the side table Mido broke, as it was a rich brown color accented with flecks of gold. The girl got up from her chair and dabbed her mouth with a fancy napkin. She, too, seemed magnificent as she had dressed up for the occasion. Over her usual blue vest and khaki shorts, she was wearing a brilliant magenta cloak fastened with golden buttons and a frilly cravat around her neck. She was wearing tan boots that went up to her knees, and her floppy ponytail was tied up into a nice bun. She looked very distinguished.

"You like the buffet?" she asked. "We rarely use this room except on special occasions, and I figured this happened to be one. It's not every day a new person comes on board!" Link didn't say anything, and she grew a bit awkward at his silence. She waved a hand over to a seat opposite from hers. "Please, sit down."

Link scooted the chair out and sat down. The intoxicating smells were so heavenly that Link took a deep whiff and let out a sigh. The girl giggled. "Believe it or not, Nudge is a great cook." She nodded at him. "Go ahead; dig in."

Link helped himself to a juicy part of the pig, which seemed rather familiar to him. Hadn't he seen this somewhere? No matter; he piled a blob of corn casserole on his plate and ripped off a piece of bread. A lot of time must have passed since he last ate with his family as his stomach was growling up a storm.

"So," the girl said. "Would you like to start off by asking me any questions?"

Link furrowed his brow at her strange way of making conversation, but nevertheless he said, "Yeah, I don't think I know your name."

"Tetra," she said.

Link was taken aback by her abruptness. "What, just Tetra? Do you have a last name?"

"I do." Well, she was a being a bit stubborn. "I also have a first name, too. Tetra's my middle name. But I don't think you really need to know my first or last name, now do you?" Cryptic and secretive. Just what he wanted from a captor. "And what's your name?"

"Link. But you don't need to know my middle or last name."

Tetra glared back at him and sighed. "Well, then we'll have a mutual agreement that neither needs to know any more about the other person's name, agreed?"

"Agreed."

"Excellent. Anything else you want to know?"

Link swallowed his bread down and asked, "So, how exactly does a teenage girl like you go about conducting a crew of middle-aged men? Aren't you a bit concerned about this at all?"

"They're not _all_ middle-aged men," she muttered. "Niko's, like twenty or something." She cleared her throat and said, "They respect me, that's all. Without me, they'd be lost little ducklings. They need some authority, and I am the perfect person to provide it."

"A… a teenage girl? Them being bossed around by one? Are you following me?"

"A teenage girl can be a lot of things, Link," she stated, and the issue was dropped.

"I just have one more question. What exactly is that wind thing you do? You know, the… thing." He motioned with his hands a swinging of a lasso, and Tetra nearly choked on her grapes.

"You must mean Farore's Wind," she said, catching her breath. "You must be Hylian, am I right?"

"Er, yeah, I am."

"That's what I thought. Most Hylians aren't accustomed to seeing Sheikah magic." She cleared her throat and smoothed down her cravat. "You see, I'm half Hylian, half Sheikah. My mom was pure Sheikah, my dad is pure Hylian."

"You're an actual Sheikah?" Link asked in amazement.

"Er, half Sheikah."

"That's awesome! So, what else can you do beside teleport? Breathe underwater? Start fires? Bring down huge lightning bolts?"

Tetra started laughing. "I'm not that good, Link! Well, I can start fires, but I really only know three spells." She scratched her head awkwardly. "I was being trained by another Sheikah, and I had to leave before I got to learn everything. But I learned three of the basics."

"Oh, really? What are they?"

Tetra beamed. "I'm glad you asked!" She seemed to like getting the chance to be an insufferable know-it-all. "Well, as you've experienced, Farore's Wind is a teleporting spell. It casts a green wind on the user and anybody or thing attached to the user, and it teleports them anywhere they want to."

"Anywhere? So why use a ship when you could just teleport your crew everywhere?"

Tetra scratched her head again. "Well, it's not that simple. I only have half Sheikah blood, so my spells aren't that powerful to begin with. Only a highly trained Sheikah can go anywhere, and not even that far. You see, you have to be able to imagine the place you want to go clearly in your mind, otherwise…" She shuddered and scratched at a fingernail of hers. "Things happen."

She cleared her throat. "Another one is Din's Fire, which obviously starts a fire. Like before, I'm not that powerful, so I have to sort of cup my hands together to even start a tiny flame." She demonstrated this hand motion, and Link ooh'ed his appreciation. "Cool, right? I mean, hot." She giggled at her lame pun.

"So what's the third one?"

"The third is perhaps the strongest out of all of them," she said ominously. "Nayru's Love. With it, you can protect yourself or someone else from anything imagined. Arrows, bombs-"

"Cannonballs."

Tetra laughed. "Yes, that too. But all I can do is a measly shield, and I have to point my hand at it as well." She raised her arm, and a small blue force field appeared. It was only about the size of a regular shield, but Link was sure it proved to be helpful in more cases than one. "My mentor used to be able to encompass me and her in an entire crystal!" she said giddily. "It was stupefying!"

"Your mentor wasn't your mother?" Link asked, confused.

"O-oh," Tetra faltered. "My mother died when I was only six." She looked down into her lap to avoid meeting Link's gaze.

"Oh. I'm sorry to hear that." Now Link felt bad. Great. "Well, both my parents died when I was only two, so I know how you feel."

"Oh, Link," Tetra said softly, her normally ice cold eyes turning a warm blue. "And here I was, moping about my mother when you've lost both your parents."

"Yes, well, you were older when she passed away, so you knew her more, and it was more devastating," he hastily said, a tinge of pink creeping up on his cheeks.

All of a sudden, Tetra started to laugh. "Look at us!" she chuckled. "Fighting over whose death was more depressing! Who even fights over things like that?"

Tetra's laugh was so infectious that Link started to get the giggles as well. A wave of emotions just came over him, and suddenly, both him and Tetra were both laughing and crying at the same time. Link wiped away a tear and realized how strange the scene must be. A captor and her hostage were eating dinner like civilized people and then proceeded to laugh and cry off their heads like they were old friends. It was weird. Link felt strangely at home with this girl, even having known her for mere hours. She seemed to notice this, too.

"Y'know, Link? I like you. You seem like a friendly guy. Nice and chivalrous, too. In this day and age, it's hard to find someone with a passion for protecting the weak like you. I respect that." She cleared her throat and dried her eyes with her napkin. "Consider my death threats your initiation for coming on board my ship. And congratulations; you passed."

Link smiled. "Thanks, Tetra." He cut out a piece of the pork and plopped it into his mouth. "So, any questions for me?"

"Well, I guess we're already past all of my initial questions of 'Are you a good person?' or 'What race are you?' so…" She seemed hesitant.

"What? What is it?"

"Erm… It's nothing." Her eyes shifted to the left, and she fiddled with her fork.

"C'mon, ask me anything. I can handle it. Yes, I am sixteen. I have a sister who's fifteen, a grandma who's ancient, I like chocolate over vanilla, I wear boxers…"

Tetra stifled a laugh. "Well, that's not exactly what I was going to ask, but…"

"So, come on!"

"Er… Do you have a girlfriend?"

Link blushed. "U-uh," he stammered. Tetra was blushing just as red as he was.

"Er, this is strictly for background purposes! You know, so I can clearly see what kind of person you are! I-I don't have a boyfriend, but that's coincidental with what I'm asking. This is all merely scientific!"

"Yes, yes of course," Link coughed. "Er, no."

"No?"

"Er, no, I don't have one."

"Oh."

"I have a friend that's a girl that would say otherwise, but Mido has the hots for her and… Well, no getting in his way."

"So… you like her?"

"No! That's not what I meant! I… Ugh, it's complicated."

"I see…" Tetra looked down at her lap, and her hands were wringing together. The awkwardness in the room was thicker than the cream puffs. Suddenly, she stood up from the table and smoothed down her cape. "Dinner was pleasant, Link," she said, regaining her clear speaking voice. "I had a nice time."

"You barely ate," Link pointed out.

"Well, it is, like, four in the morning. I'm not that hungry." She stood there for a while in silence before saying, "Well, I'll see you later." She hustled out of the room.

Link stared back at the mountains of food. "Who's going to clean this up?" he wondered.

* * *

**So, how was it? I got Tetra's formal outfit from one of my favorite games (Miles Edgeworth, anybody?) Thank you again everyone who reviewed last chapter; it means a lot to me. Let's keep it up! I love me some reviews. And don't forget to fave/follow! :)**


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